1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is applied to a printing system in which an image forming apparatus and two information processing apparatuses are connected through a network. More specifically, the present invention relates to a printing method, a printing system and an image forming apparatus for printing the print data outputted from two information processing apparatuses by using the image forming apparatus, and more particularly relates to a printing method and so on capable of restricting display of information related to a print process command of an information processing apparatus for shop staff when an information processing apparatus for customers and the information processing apparatus for shop staff are installed in a shop and the both information processing apparatuses commonly uses one image forming apparatuses.
2. Description of Related Art
In recent years, it is generally seen that image forming apparatuses such as copying machines are installed in shops such as convenience stores in town to provide copy services. A plurality of users can easily use such copy services by bringing book documents, sheet documents, etc. Moreover, with the recent development of digital image forming apparatuses, multi function type image forming apparatuses (Multi Function Printer: MFP) are commercialized. The MFP has printer function for electronically scanning a document image with a scanner device and printing out the image with a laser printer or other printer, copying function, and facsimile function. Such digital image forming apparatuses have the advantages of enabling high image quality output, free image processing, one-scan multi-copy, storage of electronic data of documents, etc., and the advantages of digital image forming apparatuses are provided as new document services in markets.
In such a situation, an increasing number of recent image forming apparatuses for copy services are developed as digital and color image forming apparatuses, and it is popular to install color digital copying machines. Furthermore, there are provided document output services such as making “black-and-white” copies and color copies from a monochrome document, or a color document, and printing out in color the information obtained through a network.
As a printing service using a network environment, for example, a network print system disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-268853 is known. The Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-268853 discloses a network print system in which print data is registered in advance in a server from a personal computer of a user and printed out, via the Internet, by a printout device installed in a place the user visits.
On the other hand, there may be a case where the shop staff in a shop such as a convenience store prints the pay slips of stuff in the shop, new product information, sales data, instruction documents from the headquarters, etc. In such a case, conventionally, the print data is generally printed by an ink jet printer, laser printer, or other printer connected to a personal computer installed in the staff room in the shop.
Therefore, even though a multi-function, high-performance image forming apparatus for customers is present in the shop, it is necessary to separately prepare a printer for shop staff, and this is irrational. In order to eliminate the irrationality, it may be considered to connect the personal computer for shop staff to the image forming apparatus for customers. However, it is often the case that the print data as described above is highly confidential data including business data of the shop, and there is a fear that a customer may carry away the print data by mistake.
In addition, as described above, since the multi-function image forming apparatus may be used as a copying machine or a printer by a plurality of customers, if the image forming apparatus is further used as a printer for business use by the shop staff, the customers and the shop staff may be confused in operating the image forming apparatus.